Rakkath

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Rak'kath. (Shore). A fortified city, in the tribe of Naphtali.  Joshua 19:35 It was on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee, not far from the warm baths of Tiberias.

Morrish Bible Dictionary

Fortified city of Naphtali.  Joshua 19:35 . Judged to be the same as TIBERIASin the N.T. Identified with Tubariya , 32 47' N, 35 32' E .

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

Rakkath . A ‘fenced city’ of Naphtali (  Joshua 19:35 ). The later Rabbis placed it at or near Tiberias.

Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary

A city of Naphtali. ( Joshua 19:35) From Rakah empty.

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

A fortified town of Naphtali ( Joshua 19:35).

Holman Bible Dictionary

 Joshua 19:35

Easton's Bible Dictionary

 Joshua 19:35

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

(Heb. Rakkath', רִקִּת , Shore; Sept. ῾Ρακκάθ v. r. Δακέθ ), a fortified city in the tribe of Naphtali, mentioned only in  Joshua 19:35, where it is grouped between Hammath and Chinnereth. We may hence infer that it lay on the western shore of the lake of Galilee, not far distant from the warm baths of Tiberias,which are on the site of the ancient Hammath (q.v.). According to the rabbins ( Megillah , 6 a), Rakkath stood upon the spot where the city of Tiberias was afterwards built (see Lightfoot, Opp. ii, 223). (See Cinnereth). Rakkath appears to have fallen to ruin at an early period, or at least it was not a place of sufficient note to be mentioned in history, and the name passed away altogether when Tiberias was founded. The statement of Josephus that ancient tombs had to be removed to make room for the buildings of Tiberias does not, as Dr. Robinson supposes, make it impossible that the city stood on the site of Rakkath (Josephus, Ant. 18:2, 3; Robinson, Bib. Res. ii, 389). Rakkath may have stood close on the shore where there were no tombs; while Tiberias, being much larger, extended some distance up the adjoining rocky hill-sides, in which the tombs may still be seen. Thomson (Land and Book, ii, 66) identifies Hammath with the Emmaus of Josephus (Ant. 18:2, 3), and supposes Rakkath to be the same name with the Arab Keralk, at the mouth of the Jordan; but this latter rather represents the ancient Tarichlla (q.v.). The ennmeration of the towns in the connection requires us to understand this to be the same with the name preceding, i.e. Hammath-Rakkath. (See Tribe Of Naphtali).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

rak´ath ( רקּת , raḳḳath  ; Codex Vaticanus Ωμαθαδακέθ , Ōmathadakéth  ; Codex Alexandrinus Ῥεκκάθ , Rhekkáth ): The Greek is obviously the result of confusing the two names Rakkath and Hammath, taking r in the former for d . Rakkath was one of the fortified cities in Naphtali (  Joshua 19:35 ). It is named between Hammath and Chinnereth. Hammath is identified with the hot baths to the South of Tiberias. There are traces of ancient fortifications here. The rabbis think that Tiberias was built on the site of Rakkath. Certain it is that Herod's town was built upon an ancient site, the graves of the old inhabitants being disturbed in digging the new foundations (Neubauer, Geog. du Talmud , 208).